Home » Sri Lanka » 17 - 29 June 2005 Update in Unawatuna

Laura Dunham and Kate Posner have taken a trip to India to both have a chance for some rest, but primarily to renew their visas, so they can continue to be integral to the efforts of Friends of Unawatuna on the ground, helped of course by Sam: driver, translator, bodyguard, etc. Two of the trustees, Claire & Jamie Wilkinson visited Unawatuna, self-funded, to take a look at how the work was progressing across the area.

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17 - 29 June 2005 Update in Unawatuna

Lasulo
2006-01-06 19:44:34

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The refurbishment of the 6 classrooms, stairwell and hallway are just about finished.

We are just about finished with all the painting and need to put in the floor in the computer room and then the room will be ready for the computers. The classrooms downstairs have all had a facelift by being cleaned and painted and having clocks installed (not that time means a damn thing here in Sri Lanka!). The hallway and ceiling downstairs have also been cleaned and painted. Many spiders lost their homes in the cleaning tsunami, but the building looks infinitely better, brighter, and cleaner.

Friends of Unawatuna plaques have been made for the rooms.

Rugby and netball shirts have also been donated by FoU, which look fantastic.

UNAWATUNA DISTRICT HOSPITAL

This is a heart-wrenching place to visit. The women are locked in one area, seemingly caged in, for their safety, whilst the men are free to roam around more freely. The changes made to the wards though have made for a much brighter and cleaner environment and the patients have loved meeting and interacting with the Friends.

MEEGAHA TEMPLE

The perimeter wall is finished. They are still working on some of the glass holders, which were damaged (holding statues of Buddha). It looks fabulous! Many people were there for the June poya (full moon) celebrations. There should be an official ceremony to celebrate for the next poya, which lasts 7 days.

ROOMASSALA TEMPLE

We bought two moonstones for the entrance to the Roomassala Temple. A moonstone is a concrete semi-circle that must be stepped over to enter the temple. It is important to the Buddhist religion as it is carved to represent the stages of Buddhist life. These moonstones will have a dedication to the victims of the tsunami. They are in place but still need to be carved. When finished, they will be beautiful symbols of life and remembrance.

V. SHRAMAYA TEMPLE

The V. Shramaya Temple is having a new floor and building a new wall. FoU funded the sand and cement. When the materials were delivered, Laura writes “Both monks had huge smiles and both said the same thing: we are one of the few charities that has made a promise and followed through. This is something that we have heard over and over again”

Being able to help all these temples is great for Friends of Unawatuna as they are of so much importance to the village and they were a great comfort to both locals and travellers alike during the tsunami, with a lot of people taking shelter in the aftermath.

For those of you who are not sure which temple is which, the Meegaha is not actually a temple but a shrine. This is on the road behind the beach; the Roomassala and V. Shramaya temples are 2 of the small temples in the hills used for shelter after the tsunami.